Early Christians, however, did not celebrate Christmas.
There was disagreement about when Jesus was born and some early Christians
opposed celebrating his birthday. In the fourth century Christmas was added
to the Church calendar as a feast day.

A Common Date

December 25 was a significant date for various early cultures. The
ancient Babylonians believed the
son of the queen of heaven was born on December 25. The Egyptians celebrated
the birth of the son of the fertility goddess Isis on the same date, while
ancient Arabs contended that the moon was born on December 24.

The
Romans celebrated Saturnalia, a feast named
for Saturn, god of agriculture, on December 21, the winter solstice in the northern
hemisphere. They believed the shortest day of the year was the birthday of
the sun. The Roman emperor Constantine was a member of the
sun-cult before converting to Christianity in 312.

Some scholars
suspect that Christians chose to celebrate Christ's birth on December 25 to
make it easier to convert the pagan tribes. Referring to Jesus as the "light
of the world" also fit with existing pagan beliefs about the birth of the
sun. The ancient "return of the sun" philosophy had been replaced by the
"coming of the son" message of Christianity.

Joyful and
Religious

Gradually, Christmas celebrations began to adopt the
joyful, often boisterous, holiday traditions of pagan cultures. The story of
the nativity was told through music, art, and dance.

Some Medieval
Christians objected, however, maintaining that Christmas should be a somber
religious day, not a secular festival. After the Reformation, certain Protestant groups
opposed Christmas celebrations. Oliver
Cromwell banned them in England. King Charles II restored Christmas when
he ascended the throne.

In the American colonies, Puritans, Baptists,
Quakers, and Presbyterians opposed the festivities, while Catholics,
Anglicans (Episcopalians), Dutch Reformed, and Lutherans approved.

Christmas celebrations became more common in America during the
mid-1800s. The introduction of Christmas services in Sunday schools reduced
religious opposition, while the Charles
Dickens novel A Christmas Carol popularized the holiday as a
family event.